Self-aligning neck card label



Sept- 22, 1964 M. B. BLlsH 3,149,431

SELF-ALIGNING NECK CARD LABEL Filed Feb. 14, lees @may E f6 l 7, Y l f l i .gpe'la Erg- 3 l BUY suce A; {lul/ Y BUY ONE AT TLllI/f ANU Racen/E /4v- AT THE Resuu/ puur Bonus Offer M rose cclcrcc-u United States Patent 3,149,431 SELF-ALIGNlNG NECK CARD LABEL Matthew B. Blish, Oak Park, lil. Filed Feb. 14, 1963, Ser. No. 258,555 3 Claims. (Cl. iO-311) This invention relates generally to point-of-sale advertising labels and more specifically to labels commonly known as neck cards.

Neck cards are usually made of paper stock having an elongate body portion with advertising matter printed thereon and a top flap portion with a centrally disposed die-cut aperture.

In use, such neck card devices are attached to containers to increase product sales, and unlike ordinary band type labels, they are constructed to stand out and attract buyer attention.

In application, the top flap portion is placed over the top of a container so that the container closure member and neck portion protrude through the aperture, thus retaining the neck card and enabling the downwardly folded body portion to become somewhat vertically suspended adjacent to the container side Wall with the advertising message facing outward to gain attention of a prospective purchaser of the commodity carried Within the container.

In retail store merchandising procedure, neck card bearing containers are placed upon shelves and counters for customer viewing and shopping convenience. They usually direct attention to special oifers employed as inducements to purchase the displayed commodities. As their function is to increase sales, it is highly important that the advertising matter carried upon the front face of the neck card is readily seen by the prospective buyer in a neat, easy to read and quickly ascertainable manner. Applied neck cards disarranged or malaligned during packing, shipping, shelving or other handling and therefore not vertically suspended straight in an easily Viewed fashion adjacent the container side wail, create a decidedly unfavorable situation with regard to the merchandising purpose for which they are intended.

Because of the major importance of winning consumer good will and gaining greater retail sales volume by means of special oiers, premium deals and the like, through point-of-sale neck card advertising, it is an object of the present invention to overcome disadvantages and weaknesses of neck cards as heretofore made and to provide a neck card that will retain its advertising bearing body portion in a self-aligned, vertically suspended and easy to read manner.

It is a further object to provide a neck card that will reduce handling disarrangement and thereby produce the maximum degree of advertising value for which it is intended.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which form a part thereof and illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention, in which:

FIG. l is a perspective view of the neck card embodying the invention and incorporated in use with a container.

FIG. 2 is a front face plan View of the neck card in fully opened position.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary rear face plan View of the upper portion of the neck card as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a View similar to FIG. 3 embodying a variant form ofthe neck card.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary edge side plan View of the upper portion of the neck card shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 ICC invention and incorporated in use with a container.

FlG. 7 is a front face plan view of the neck card shown in FIG. 6 in fully opened position.

1G. 8 is a fragmentary edge side View of the upper portion of the neck card shown in FIG. 7 in folded position.

Referring more in detail to the accompanying drawings in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all views, the numeral 10 denotes the neck card top flap portion, which is provided with an aperture 11 through which protrudes the closure member 12 of the container 13 as shown in FIG. l.

The neck card structures shown throughout the drawings are preferred embodiments of the invention, and each is preferably formed of an integral blank, the top end of the body portion 14 being foldably connected to the intermediate section 15 at the fold line 16 as shown in FIG. 2. The intermediate section rear face side 18 has an adhesive coating 19 as shown in FIG. 3 which may be of water-activated glue or pressure-sensitive adhesive and is foldably connected to the top flap portion at the fold line 29.

In accordance with the present invention the neck card is constructed with a transverse fold line 16 disposed at the bottom edge of the intermediate section adjacent the top edge of the body portion and a second transversefold line i3 provided at the top edge of the intermediate section adjacent the bottom edge of the top ap portion. Attention is now directed to the adhesive coated rear face 13 of the intermediate section as indicated at 19 in FIG. 3; upon folding the intermediate section downward at the first mentioned transverse fold line the intermediate section rear face becomes adhesively bonded to the upper part 22 of the rear face of the body portion, forming a right angular configuration as shown in FiG. 5 having the upper part 21 of the body portion vertically extending above the horizontal plane of the top flap portion, thus forcing the body portion to remain suspended in a vertically straight position in right angular relation to the horizontally disposed top ap portion upon placing the top ap portion over the top of a container so that the container closure member protrudes through the top flap portion aperture horizontally securing the top flap portion to the neck of the container. If desired, the intermediate section may be bonded to the upper part of the body portion rear face by applying the adhesive coating 23 at a margin of the body portion rear face as shown in FIG. 4.

The neck card illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 is similar to the foregoing vertically self-aligning structures and a further merchandising advantage is provided by the attention compelling portion 24, which projects vertically upward above the body portion top edge upon folding the intermediate section downward. Being a cut out part of the intermediate section, the attention compelling portion may be of variously extending heights by varying the dimensional width of the intermediate section.

The attention compelling portion design selected in the form of an arrow is for the purpose of illustration and various other suitable configurations may of course, be employed.

l't is believed that a clear understanding of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in this art, in view of the foregoing descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and that it will readily become apparent that such novel structures bring forth new neck card construction advantages, and more detailed descriptions are therefore deemed unnecessary.

While preferred embodiments of the invention are described herein and shown in the accompanying drawings in detail, other arrangements may be produced without departing from the scope of the invention. It is to be understood that all matter contained in the foregoing descriptions or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense; that certain changes from the exact shapes or constructions shown, and fullycornprehended by the spirit of the invention may be rnade without affecting the scope and spirit of the inventionV as hereinafter claimed'.

What is claimed is:

1, In a neck card comprising a body portion, a top flap portion having an aperture for securing the closure member of a container therethrough; having in combination therewith: an integral intermediate section transversely formed intermediately. of the` body portion top edge and the4 top flap portion bottom edge, a rst transverse fold line at the top edge of the body portion, a second transverse Vfold line at the top edge of the intermediate section, vthe intermediate section downwardly fold. able at said lirst transverse fold line, the top llap portionV upwardly foldable atsaid second transverse 'fold Vline right angularly of the body portion, means securing the body portion top end in face-to-face relation to the intermediate section disposing the intermediate section vertically raised above the horizontal plane of the top flap portion right angularly thereof.

2. In a neck card comprising a body portion, a top flap portion having an aperture for securing the closure member of a container therethrough; having in combination therewith: an integral intermediate section having conguration cut lines therein and transversely formed intermediately of the body portion top edge and the top ap portionv bottom edge, a rst transverse fold line at the zontally se'curable over the upper portion of a container having an aperture for admittance of'a container closure member therethroughya body portion verticallyV suspendable downwardly of the top ilap'porti'o'n; in'combinationy therewith: an integral intermediate section having one edge adjoined a transverse fold line at one peripheral side edge of the top ap portion and an opposing edge adjoined a transverse fold line at the peripheral top edge of the body portion, means retaining the intermediate section foldably secured in face-to-face relation to the top end of the body portion disposing the intermediate section vertically raised above the horizontal plane of the top flat portion.

References Citedin the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,699,915 Peterson c Ian. 22, 1929 1,871,598 Everson Aug. 16, 1932 2,234,475 Hyndman Mar. 1l, 1941 

3. IN A NECK CARD COMPRISING A TOP FLAP PORTION HORIZONTALLY SECURABLE OVER THE UPPER PORTION OF A CONTAINER HAVING AN APERTURE FOR ADMITTANCE OF A CONTAINER CLOSURE MEMBER THERETHROUGH, A BODY PORTION VERTICALLY SUSPENDABLE DOWNWARDLY OF THE TOP FLAP PORTION; IN COMBINATION THEREWITH: AN INTEGRAL INTERMEDIATE SECTION HAVING ONE EDGE ADJOINED A TRANSVERSE FOLD LINE AT ONE PERIPHERAL SIDE EDGE OF THE TOP FLAP PORTION AND AN OPPOSING EDGE ADJOINED A TRANSVERSE FOLD LINE AT THE PERIPHERAL TOP EDGE OF THE BODY PORTION, MEANS RETAINING THE INTERMEDIATE SECTION FOLDABLY SECURED IN FACE-TO-FACE RELATION TO THE TOP END OF THE BODY PORTION DISPOSING THE INTERMEDIATE SECTION VERTICALLY RAISED ABOVE THE HORIZONTAL PLANE OF THE TOP FLAT PORTION. 